The Truth
by JessySpectre
Summary: They say searching for the truth is easy and accepting the truth is hard. Maddie knows what that means now. No Phantom Planet.
1. chapter 1

**A/N: I'm having a rare moment of almost pure creativity. I saw the quote: "Searching for the truth is easy; Accepting the truth is hard," and just had to make a fanfiction about it. So here you go . . .**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.**

Chapter 1: A Search Begins 

Maddie couldn't help but notice how as Jazz, Danny, and his friends grew closer together, a rift grew between the children and the Fenton parents. She was the only one to notice, but Jack's behavior had changed too. He saw the gap growing just as she did, and felt just as helpless and afraid. She saw all of this. Despite what others may have thought, she and Jack were not oblivious. They tried on several occasions to bridge the gap, but nothing worked. It was temporary at best.

Maddie wondered what could have possibly caused this empty abyss to grow so large. It hurt her that she hadn't seen it coming, hadn't been able to stop it, hadn't even been able to slow it down. She saw that it hurt Jack too. She could tell he was strong and tried to just shrug it off, tried to tell himself it was 'just a phase, something that all teens go through,' but Maddie knew just as well as he did that wasn't true.

Sure, teenagers were moody and secretive, but not this much. And the worst part was how if you looked closely enough, you could see a haunted look on Danny. There were moments when, just for a second, Danny dropped some sort of constant façade, and you would see a certain deepness, a darkness, deep in those lovely blue eyes. He knew something, had seen something, and no one could guess what it was. His friends and sister knew, but they hadn't been there apparently. They only knew because Danny told them.

Currently, Jack was at the table, working on a new invention or fixing an old one. Maddie didn't care. He was effectively taking his mind off of what Maddie couldn't, no matter how hard she tried. Danny was running late for school again, having yet to make an

appearance downstairs. Jazz had left for school.

Danny then came running down the stairs, tripping and falling half of the way down. Quickly, he picked himself off the floor and shouted, "I'm okay!" Then he came into the kitchen dusting himself off. He grabbed a bowl and poured a bowl of cereal. Maddie was confused at how fast he ate. She could have sworn he swallowed the spoon once, but it reappeared in his other hand, so he must have just dropped it in his lap.

Although he did glance up at them as if to make sure they hadn't seen something. "Honey," Maddie began, addressing Danny. She had to pretend she didn't notice his strange behaviour. He was probably expecting some kind of 'You can tell us anything' speech. "Just . . . Have a good day. Okay, Sweetie?"

He seemed surprised and relieved at that. "Oh." He laughed, but it held no mirth. "Yeah. Sure, Mom," he said, though it sounded sarcastic, as if h0e hadn't ever known what a good day was. It broke Maddie's heart, the tone he used. Had this really been going on that long? She didn't notice he'd finished until she heard him yell, "See you later!" the door slamming behind him.

Jack's composure dropped. He'd been crushed by his son's tone as well. "Mads? What do we do? I just want Danny to be happy, but no matter what we do, it just gets worse." He sounded devastated. Maddie couldn't help it any more. Her expression hardened to determination.

"Jack, we're going to find out the truth. One way or another. We can't help him if we don't know what's wrong."

"True," he conceded. "But how are we gonna do that, Mads?"

"Danny said he broke his phone again, correct?"

"Yes," Jack confirmed, still not getting the point.

"We get him another, and plant a tracker in it. He might be suspicious if we are seen messing with it before giving it to him, so we'll be upgrading it so even a ghost couldn't break it. It will help so he can't break it again, and we'll see where he goes off to all the time," Maddie explained. Jack's face lit up.

"That's a great idea, Mads!" he exclaimed.

 _Later . . ._

Maddie heard the front door close and Danny yell, "Mom, Dad? I'm home."

"Down in the lab, Sweetie," she called back. She could feel his hesitation. He came down anyway.

"What are you guys working on?"

"Well, you break your phone so often, we wanted to make sure this one wouldn't break," Maddie explained calmly.

"So," he started, looking nervous. "It's not a weapon?"

"No, Sweetie. We're just upgrading it so that not even a ghost can break it. You really are quite clumsy." He muttered something that sounded a lot like 'I bet Johnny's Shadow could break it' but Maddie just frowned and helped Jack with the finishing touches. She handed it to Danny. "If you manage to break this one, I'll be very surprised."

"Cool," Danny said. "I'm going to go meet Sam and Tucker now. See you later." He went back upstairs and left. Maddie got on the computer and pulled up a map. On it there was a green dot slowly making it's way to Tucker's. She transfered the map to a handheld device, before going upstairs herself with Jack in tow. Now, all they had to do was wait.


	2. Why Are You Here, Phantom?

**A/N: Loving the support guys!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.**

Chapter 2: Why Are You Here, Phantom? 

Danny left Tucker's at a reasonable time, according to the green dot. He made as straight a line as possible towards FentonWorks. Maddie wondered if perhaps he would be home before or at curfew. He made it to just outside the house before pausing. Then the dot moved quickly and sporadically, too fast to be a human, let alone their son.

"Jack, look at this!" Maddie cried. He had been sitting next to her and looked at the screen. His eyes widened with realization.

"GHOST!" The two grabbed a pair of Fenton Bazookas and ran out the door. Phantom was fighting that robot ghost-Skulker was it?-and was winning. He finished quickly and touched down just before the steps the Fenton's were still standing on, not noticing them since he was facing away.

"Haha! Looks like Skulker won't be hanging my pelt on his wall anytime soon. And now-" he turned around, and two rings appeared on his waist. When he saw what was before him(twin bazookas trained on his face) the rings fizzled out of existance. Maddie noted that and briefly wondered what it meant. She'd never seen _that_ before. "Uh . . . um . . . Hi?" Maddie's gaze was still at his waist, where she saw her son's phone.

"Why are you here, Phantom?" Jack asked.

"And why do you have our son's phone?" Maddie questioned, turning her gaze to Phantom's eyes. _Funny_ , she thought. _His eyes show fear. Of what?_

"Um," he gulped. "Found it? Yeah. Just before Skulker showed up. I was gonna return it."

"What about our son, Danny?" she asked calmly. "Do you know what happened to him?"

"Uh, no? I didn't see him. I just saw this." He held out the phone and Maddie took it. "Uh, can I go now?" Maddie pulled out a different device, pointed it at Phantom, and shot. A net enveloped him, pinning his limbs at odd angles.

"No," she replied. "You're coming with us until we find Danny." Phantom groaned. "Jack, you take the east half of Amity Park, and I'll take the west half." Jack nodded and went off to search, as did Maddie who had swung Phantom over her shoulder.

 **-DP-**

Danny sighed, trying to get a little more comfortable. He wasn't getting out of this. Tucker and Sam thought he was at home and Jazz was at a friends. It still came as a surprise that she had friends. Maybe it was time to tell his parents? No. Not like this. He couldn't tell them as Phantom; they'd simply think it was a trick. They wouldn't believe him, would they?

He sighed again. He'd have to think of another way out. He would wait to tell them until it was serious. It would be a last resort. But what would happen if they didn't find Fenton? Wouldn't they immediately interrogate him, since Phantom was found with his phone?

He could try freezing the net and breaking it, but there was the possibility he might accidentally freeze Maddie too. A ghost or even a halfa would survive, but a full human? Would she survive? He couldn't risk that, wouldn't risk that.

Once again sighing, he realized that he couldn't channel his ecto-energy into the net to break it _that_ way. The energy needed to escape was enough to seriously burn a human, nevermind that it could sometimes get explosive. Maddie would be alive, but injured.

"Would you stop that?" she demanded, irritation leaking into her tone.

"Stop what?" He hadn't realized he'd been sighing.

"Sighing! Argh!" By this time they were heading back to FentonWorks. Danny knew what would happen when they got there. Or at least, he had a pretty good guess.

They reached FentonWorks and Maddie hauled him inside and down to the lab. Jack was there wearing the Ghost Gauntlets. Maddie unceremoniously dumped Danny on the floor and Jack grabbed him pinning him into a chair just as unceremoniously. Maddie cuffed him using ghost-proof handcuffs and tied him to the chair using the Fenton Fisher.

"Okay Phantom, answer our questions, and depending on your answers, we might let you go."

 **A/N: I know this is my second story; I don't expect everything to be perfect and I like it that way. I write stories off the top of my head, not plan them out. So if you notice errors, I would appreciate that you tell me what they are and not just that they exist. Thanks! :)**


	3. Remember the Portal Accident?

**A/N: You guys weren't there to hear me squeal in delight from all the positive feedback, but it happened. Thanks so much guys!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.**

Chapter 3: Remember the Portal Acccident?

"We know that you know where Danny is, Phantom. So where is he?" Maddie asked. She was angry, but tried not to show it. Apparently it wasn't working, seeing as how all the venom that leaked into her voice made him flinch as if she'd slapped him. She wasn't quite sure, but it looked like his eyes might be tearing up.

He glanced up to look into her eyes, then found his lap to be a more appealing sight. He opened his mouth to say something, probably some cocky remark like usual, then hesitated. "If I told you, I'm not sure you'd believe me. That, or you'd misinterpret the situation." His response was definitely unexpected, and he was totally dodging the question. Maddie frowned, and Jack looked very puzzled.

So he _did_ know where Danny was, but he wouldn't say. "Where did you last see him?" She asked. He looked deep in thought, choosing his words carefully.

" _He_ was last seen heading here. From a friend's. A ghost attacked me and _he_ disappeared. Kinda like a ghost going invisible." The way he said this confused Maddie. Phantom didn't directly involve himself with Danny, and never said Danny's name. I was more of a third person sort of view. Like he preferred to remove himself completely from Danny. He obviously didn't like the topic on a normal day, let alone now.

"Then, do you know what happened to him after that?"

"Yes." Maddie's hopes rose. "And no." They fell. "I know what happened, but I don't know how exactly it works or the specifics of it."

"Will you stop dodging the topic!?" Maddie yelled. She could feel tears threatening to spill from her eyes. "Tell me where my son is. Now." Jack moved to comfort her.

"Mads, calm down. Getting emotional won't help us now. It won't help us find Danny." Maddie knew Jack was right; getting angry wasn't going to help her now. She slowly calmed herself down. The calmer she became, the sadder Phantom looked.

She finally looked up at him and asked, "Please. If you really are a 'good ghost' like you say, a 'hero,' then tell us where our son is. Where Danny is." He looked her in the eyes and she saw it. The look of defeat. Of knowing that he was unable to stop the inevitable from happening. It seemed so unnatural on him; it wasn't something they'd ever seen.

He was quiet for a moment. "If I do, will you promise to not get mad and just listen to what I have to say? Will you promise to let me explain and not jump to conclusions?" Maddie and Jack looked at each other, and then both nodded and sat down. "Well, the truth is-" he paused and the rings appeared again, this time splitting and running up and down. When they were finished, Danny Fenton sat there and continued, "-I'm right here."

"What? But- How?" the two parents spluttered.

"Before you say something crazy like 'Phantom's overshadowing Danny,' he's not. _I'm_ not. How can I overshadow myself?"

"What do you mean by that?" Maddie asked.

"Well, remember the Portal accident?" Maddie and Jack nodded, not sure where this was going and how the ghost boy knew of it. "I wasn't outside it, and the shock I got wasn't so little like I said it was. Dad, you sort of put the 'on' button inside."

And there it was. If what Phantom-or Danny-said was true, the shock should have killed him.

He continued, noting the looks of shock and horror on their faces. "It turned me into what the ghosts call a 'halfa,' a half-ghost, half human hybrid. I wanted to use my new powers to help people. I didn't tell you guys because I thought you might not accept me. That you might try to 'tear me apart molecule by molecule' if you knew who I was. _What_ I am."

"Danny?" Maddie wondered.

"Yes?"

"Can-can you prove it? Prove that it's really you?"

"Can I answer that with a question?" She nodded. "What's DALV spelled backwards?" He gave her a cocky grin like the one Phantom always had. He must have seen that she'd figured it out and then went on to say, "I meant it when I told you I thought you were awesome, but I gotta say that Spectre Deflector kinda hurt."

Both parents winced at the mention of the Spectre Deflector. They now knew that he was telling the truth, and realized exactly what they'd done. They remembered every misunderstanding and realized what had really been happening. But a few things about Phantom's actions puzzled them. Maddie was the one to voice their concerns.

"What about . . . the robberies? And the Mayor?"

"I was framed or controlled. Remember Freakshow from Circus Gothica? He had a special staff that could control ghosts. And this ghost named Walker and his goons overshadowed half the town and set me up during the mayor incident. I kind of shot at you because I thought you guys were overshadowed too. And at Christmas, I sorta ticked off this Ghost Writer by accidentally destroying his Christmas poem. Did you guys know that ghosts have an annual truce on Christmas?"

"Um . . . no." Maddie said.

"Yeah, the Ghost Writer thought they'd forget about it because half the ghosts in the Zone hate me, but he was so wrong. Anyway, does that clear everything up?"

"Yes," Maddie said quietly. She was on the verge of tears and Jack was uncharacteristically quiet.

 **A/N: Another chapter done. Yay! Guess you guys are going to have to wait until tomorrow to see what happens next. Sorry about the suspense, it's just that I'm going to a friend's graduation open house. Until tomorrow then. Bye!**


	4. Don't Cry

**A/N: I'm back! Yay! And thanks for all the support!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom.**

Chapter 4: Don't Cry 

"Son, can you ever forgive us?" Jack finally asked. Danny's head snapped up. He hadn't expected this.

"Wh-what!?" he choked out. "Of course!" he quickly added. "If anyone should be sorry, it should be me! I lied to you guys so many times. _I_ should be asking _you_ to forgive _me_." This made Maddie break down sobbing. Both his parents loved him, and didn't want to believe they'd _hunted_ and _shot_ their _own son_.

"But how?!" Maddie sobbed. " _We hunted you! We shot at you!_ " Danny couldn't stand seeing her like this. He figured that his parents were far enough away, so he focused ecto-energy on the Fenton Fisher and it snapped off. The same couldn't be said for the cuffs, but at least he could rush over to comfort his mother, which he did.

"It's okay, Mom. _I'm_ okay. You didn't know it was me."

"But we should have!" she was getting close to hysterical.

"I know. I should have told you the minute I realized what happened. Please, mom. Don't cry. It's not your fault. It's mine." She didn't stop crying, only grabbed fistfuls of his shirt and cried into his shoulder. He let her. Jack, meanwhile, got the keys to the cuffs and uncuffed him, before pulling the two into a big hug.

"I'm proud of you, son. _We're_ proud of you." he whispered. They stayed like that until Maddie calmed down. When they saw the time, they all agreed to go to bed. It had been a long day for all of them. At least tomorrow was the weekend.

 **-DP-**

Danny woke up the next morning and went downstairs, still half asleep. He saw Maddie making pancakes and Jack talking about ghosts, but as soon as his presence was noticed, Jack went quiet. This caused Maddie to turn around. She saw Danny and smiled brightly.

"So, how's my favorite little ghost boy feeling today?" she asked sweetly. When he realized what that meant, he was suddenly alert.

"Huh? How did you-" Then he remembered the night before. "Oh. Last night," he said pulling out his chair and sitting in it. Unfortunately, he was suddenly nervous and it caused his powers to short out and he fell through it instead. He glared at the chair. "Stupid intangibility," he muttered, causing his parents to burst out laughing. Suddenly they understood his clumsiness. "It's not funny!" he protested.

"No, but it broke the tension!" Maddie stated. She put a plate of pancakes at his place as he got back into his seat.

"Uh, these pancakes are green, mom. And they're _glowing_."

"That's because I made them special for you."

Danny glared suspiciously at them for a moment. Then he tried it. They were good. Really good. Although he was sure a normal person would have said the opposite. But then, Danny wasn't normal.

 **-DP-**

Maddie watched as Danny ate his breakfast and happily noted that it was like a fog had lifted. Danny still had a look in his eyes that suggested he'd been through much more than a normal teenager, but it no longer seemed haunted. He could almost pass as normal. It made both her and Jack very happy to see Danny this happy. It felt like it had been ages since they'd seen him like this.

Somehow, though, she knew that even though they had been seperated, they were closer than ever before. After he finished, Danny offered to tell them all about his adventures(though he kept Vlad's secret because Vlad had kept his). When Jazz came home she nearly fainted from the sight of Danny(in ghost form) doing his best impression of the Box Ghost and her parents calmly sitting there with no weapons in sight. And laughing whenever he made a joke.

"Mom? Dad? Da-I mean-Phantom? What's going on?" she inquired. Danny floated down and changed back to Fenton.

"It's okay Jazz. They know."

"They know?" she repeated. Danny nodded vigorously and gave her the biggest smile she'd ever seen.

"Wait, Jazz knew?" Maddie asked. Danny gave herva sheepish nod.

"Why didn't you tell us Jazzypants?"

"It wasn't my secret to tell," Jazz defended.

"Oh! Oh! Jazz! This is perfect! I was just about to tell them about Youngblood, but I need you to confirm that I'm not crazy," Danny rambled excitedly. He pulled her over and began the story. She smiled. If her little brother was happy, then so was she.

 **The End**

 **A/N: I'm pretty happy with how this turned out. I know it feels like the kind of thing I could make a sequel for, but this is where my inspiration sort of left me hanging. So, if you want a sequel, you guys are going to have to give me an idea or some sort of direction to take it in.**


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